We Dance with our feet on the Earth and our hands in the soil
Our message: Return to the body, return to the Earth. Amplify Earth-centered dance forms and connect our dancing bodies directly with Mother Earth.
We are dancing in relationship with land, creating artistic works that heal degraded landscapes. We use graceful, coordinated movements to scatter seeds, transplant saplings, and restore riverbanks. We restore and strengthen our connection with community and re-learn how to honor ourselves, as we engage in dance forms that honor our Earthen bodies and teach us how to become part of the land again. By honoring our bodies, we are honoring the Earth. By dancing in direct connection with the land, together, we are healing.
Dance as ecological restoration
We are asking the question, can a live music and dance concert plant a grove of trees, restore a riverbank, or scatter native seeds?
OUR DANCES PLANT SEEDS
When we plant, we are always dancing. In planting, there is a certain rhythm, a repetition of movements, and a grounding, releasing energy; much like when we dance. Return Dance Project is creating original music and dance inspired by the natural world. We are inspiring dancers and audiences to engage in a relationship with the natural world.
We are calling our community home.
WE DANCE TO PROTECT
EARTH | WATER | AIR | FIRE
We dance on the hands of our ancestors
We are honoring the dancing memory held within all our bodies, and following the desires held within our hearts, to dance in connection with spirit, community, and land. In studying the dances of our ancestors, we connect with Earth-Centered ways of knowing. We amplify dancing wisdom that leads us back home, and teaches us how to be in right relationship with our bodies, our communities, and the land under our feet.
We are moving away from dance as a commodity, dance as a profession, dance only for the trained elite. We are moving toward community, toward connection, toward restoration. We are returning to the Earth.